With less than a week left for fiscal 2026 to end, the number of people who sought work under the government’s flagship rural job guarantee scheme in the year is set to mark the lowest level in at least six years, data from the ministry of rural development shows.
In the 11 months of April 2025 to February 2026, enrolments under the erstwhile Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme was 227.11 million. In the last month of the fiscal year, until 23 March, participation stood at 15.6 million persons.
That totals 242.71 million persons who sought work under the programme in fiscal 2026 until 23 March. Even if there's a sharp rise in enrolment in the last eight days of March, it is all but sure not to exceed the number of persons who sought MGNREGA work in any of the preceding five years.
The figure compares with 306.02 million persons who availed of MGNREGA benefits in fiscal 2025, 332.59 million in fiscal 2024, 331.54 million in 2022-23, 401.85 million in 2021-22, and 446.47 million in fiscal year 2021—indicating a steady decline in participation levels in the years.
March coincides with the rabi, or winter crop, harvest season when farm work increases and workers shift away from seeking jobs under the scheme. Projects taken up under the scheme include those related to digging canals for irrigation, construction of anganwadi centres, plantation drives, water supply and sanitation.
Participation under the employment guarantee scheme, now renamed Viksit Bharat - Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission Gramin (VB-G RAM G), is often used as an indicator of rural labour demand and economic conditions.
The scheme guarantees up to 100 days of paid unskilled work to any adult member of a rural household who demands it. Following the changes in the scheme in December, the VB-G RAM G Act increased the guarantee to 125 days.
Economists view the change in demand as a shift of workers towards farm activities as well as increased employment in both rural and urban manufacturing sectors. They say the decline in demand reflects shifting labour dynamics across sectors.
“This is largely due to a shift of workers towards farm activities, supported by better monsoon conditions and increased government intervention in rural infrastructure, which has created more employment opportunities,” said professor N.R. Bhanumurthy, director of the Madras School of Economics.
Back to the cities
During the Covid pandemic, which buffeted India in two waves starting January of 2020 and 2021, as workers in cities returned to their villages, there was a surge in demand for jobs under the MGNREGA scheme. Now, with construction and services activities picking up in urban centres, migration appears to be reversing again, Bhanumurthy said.
“The pickup in labour-intensive manufacturing sectors is likely contributing to a shift in employment patterns, drawing workers away from rural job schemes and into industrial activity,” said Rakesh Arrawatia, professor at the Institute of Rural Management Anand and dean of the School of Cooperative Banking and Finance.
According to Ashish Kumar Singh, president of the Citizen Forum, a civil rights group in Bihar, the moderating trend does not necessarily reflect improved employment conditions.
“In many areas, workers are either not getting timely work or wages, which discourages participation. The scheme continues to remain a critical safety net, especially during periods of uncertainty,” he said.
The ministry of rural development has been allocated ₹1.97 trillion in FY27, which is 4% higher than the revised budget estimate for FY26.
(The story was updated with annual figures and a comparison with five previous fiscal years.)